A Festival Survival Guide

Music festivals can be the greatest place on earth. They can also be the miserable. Avoid having the worst time of your life by following the expert advice in this guide.

Camping

This is your home for the next few days. Make sure you know how to put your tent up. Choose wisely as to where you pitch your tent because what seems like a great spot on the Thursday or Friday can become a nightmare by the time you leave on Monday morning. If there are hills on your campsite don’t pitch at the bottom of it, the last thing you want to do is come back from a day’s solid drinking to find your tent is now in the middle of a massive puddle. This one is also hugely important – make sure you know how to pack your tent away. If you don’t know how to do it then trying to work it out with the worst hangover of your life will not be fun.

Toilets

If you haven’t been at a festival before you will never have experienced the joys of festival toilets. They are a unique and harrowing experience. Even if you’ve been drinking for four days they can be a sobering experience. If you choose to pitch your tent next to the toilets in the campsite you may think you have won a watch but remember that the convenience of being close by will soon turn into a nightmare. Why you ask? The smell! Putting thousands of drunk people in a field and asking them to use the same few toilets will end up in a foul smelling mess. If you pitch your tent close to the toilets also expect to be woken up by the lorry coming to empty them at the crack of dawn.

Boozing

Everyone goes to music festivals to have fun. No one wants to be hassled by people who are so drunk they are a danger to themselves and everyone around them. Those shots of vodka for breakfast might seem like a great idea at the time, but when you end up in the medical tent mid-afternoon it doesn’t seem very bright. Pace yourself and drink plenty of water between drinks, especially if its hot.

Clothing

When coming to a festival the rule of thumb is be “be prepared.” Come with appropriate clothing for all seasons. The weather has a habit of doing what you least expect it. Have several layers including a waterproof one. Bring wellies. If it rains it will get muddy very quickly. Bring a set of fresh clothes to change into. Ideally have them in a waterproof bag of some description. If your tent gets flooded, you’ll at least want your clean set of clothes to be dry for changing into when you get back to civilisation.